REVIEWED BY: Ms. Cairo
MY RECOMMENDATION: YES
AMAZON SUBSCRIPTION LINK: Addiction and Treatment Blog, by Joseph Kernozek
WEB ADDRESS: http://www.theaddictionblog.com/
BLOG DESCRIPTION: The Addiction and Treatment Blog is dedicated to providing up to date information to help people better understand and discuss addiction and its treatment, so those helping people involved in addictive behaviors, as well as the people involved and their loved ones will know exactly what they are battling and that there is hope and recovery is possible.
MY REVIEW: This is a blog that needs to be read by a lot of people - not only those suffering from some form of addiction, but their family and friends, as well as just people in general who too often get their knowledge of addiction from the stereotypes shown on cop shows like the Law and Order franchises or the CSI franchises.
The post are made by a variety of authors -- recovered addict or those in the process of recovery - who have been there, done that, know whereof they speak.
The blog is part of a website that also has more information, news articles, information on addiction, videos, and so on.
If you're working to take back control of your life, or helping someone else to do so, I highly recommend this blog.
Sample post
Inside Stigma: A Patient's Perspective
Posted by Sarah Ann Henderson on July 29, 2010 at 11:07 AM
Hi, my name is Sarah. I’m Anorexic, Bulimic, and a Cutter.
You could call me these things. But they wouldn’t be accurate. Because I am not these things, these labels. And I am not in recovery from these things.
I am recovered.
From those things, I am recovered. I have bipolar, which requires ongoing management. But you wouldn’t know that if I didn’t tell you. I am not the stereotype, I am not the crazy person we all think of, ranting and raving on some street corner. I am like anyone else, except I take a few pills before I brush my teeth in the morning.
And yet.
I still catch flak all the time. For taking meds, for going to therapy, for the eating disorder history, for the visible scars from years of cutting. People comment on them, I've lost jobs because of them. It's like, what do you want? I used to cut myself. I don't anymore. I used to starve and binge and purge. I don't anymore. So eat lunch with me and stop looking at me like I'm going to vomit on the table any second. Deal with me as I am now, not as I was then.
And yes, I take medication for a chemical imbalance. Guess what? So do diabetics. Only their imbalance is in the pancreas, and mine is in my brain. That's the difference that makes people freak. That's where the stigma lies.
If you ask a poet, he'll tell you the seat of the soul lies in the heart. If you ask a neurologist, he will rightly tell you that the seat of the soul lies in the brain. And anyone who's ever experienced dementia will testify to that. It's very possible to exist in your body without living in it. And it's possible for the person you love to die long before their heart stops.
I believe that stigma comes from people's instinctual knowledge that when you mess with the brain, you mess with the soul. It can be disturbing, it can be terrifying, it can be cruel. And most people just aren't up for facing that. However, when you don't face it, you also miss out on everything the other side has to offer: healing, resilience, clarity, and courage. And while they are some people who don’t come back from mental illness, the vast majority of us do. The other side is a beautiful place. And if you can get past the stigma, you can join us.
© Sarah Henderson 2010
RECENT POSTS:
--Mom Accidentally Poisons Child With Cough Meds; Researcher Sees Problem as Child Abuse
--Inside Stigma: A Patient's Perspective
--I Am Your Recovery: A Response
--That Which is Hidden Cannot be Healed: Where there is HOPE...there is HEALING!
--Spirituality and The 12 Steps
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Ms. Cairo writes several blogs including:
Seaborn: Oceanography Blog
Star Trek Report: Space Sciences
Topical Murder and Dated Death
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